Thank
you for David King·s article about the closing of Music
Shack [·The Day the Music Shack Died,· May 4].
It hit very close to home for me because I am the manager
of another Albany indie, Deja View Video. After being in business
for almost 20 years, we have found ourselves in a similar
predicament to our former neighbors. We, too, were forced
to move from lower Central Avenue because of circumstances
beyond our control. All one must do is walk the block between
Lark Street and Henry Johnson Boulevard and one will be offered
bootleg DVDs for next to nothing. We simply couldn·t
compete. And with absolutely no police enforcement, we made
the hard decision to leave lower Central. We are now located
at 279 New Scotland Ave., where bootlegs aren·t as
big of an issue. But business still suffers in this world
of downloads, cheap DVD burners, and chain stores.

In the
most recent Metroland Reader·s Poll, NetFlix was
voted Best Video Store, followed by the overpriced Hollywood
Video and the famously conservative and even more overpriced
Blockbuster Video. Besides the obvious fact that NetFlix isn·t
a video store, I really wonder how they got so many votes.
Getting those red envelopes in the mail just cannot compare
to the experience of going to the video store, getting a staff
recommendation, and possibly discovering something obscure
or unusual to take home.

The only
fault I found in the article was that Mr. King didn·t
address what to do to save other indie stores. The simple
answer is to shop there. If people desire any diversity or
artistic vision at all in their entertainment choices, then
patronizing independent businesses is key. Don·t subscribe
to NetFlix. Don·t shop at Wal-Mart or Best Buy. Don·t
illegally download an album or a movie. It·s really
that simple. Sometimes saving a couple of bucks costs a lot
more than we realize.

Jeremy
James

Manager,
Deja View Video

Albany

To the Editor:

I am writing
to formally thank Rocky and Steve Roy of Music Shack for the
existence of their store(s) over the years.

As an
RPI student in the late ·80s, I would walk down the
hill once a week to Music Shack and buy as much new rap vinyl
as I could afford. A large portion of my record collection
has a Music Shack price sticker on it.

One topic
that wasn·t really explored in your article was the
continuous support Music Shack provided for local musicians.
Many artists of all genres were able to get their CDs in Music
Shack. Try doing that at a Transworld location.

Thank
you Rocky and Steve.

Eric Haskins
(aka DJ Toast)

Rexford

Facts
are Facts

To the
Editor:

On your
editorial about the Times Union coverage of Kenneth Wilcox·s
death [·Reporting Can Hurt,· May 4], I couldn·t
agree with you more.

I knew
Ken socially, and he was awesome in many ways, but he was
also human (read: not perfect). Of course that is difficult
for the family to face at such an emotional time, and perhaps
it could have been reported more sensitively, but the news
is the news.

Whether
the accounts of his actions that night were accurate or not,
the reporter had no way of knowing; but when several people
give you the same details, you have to assume there is some
truth to their accounts. The reporter·s job, after
all, is to report. He wasn·t creating these accounts,
he was reporting them.

While
a reporter absolutely has an obligation to be as certain as
possible of the facts, there is just so much he can do about
the recollection of many witnesses who shared the same account
of Ken·s actions that fateful evening. That he would
be threatened for his report is inexcusable, but as you pointed
out, probably said at a very emotional time. We·ve
all done things we regret when we·re under emotional
distress, and it·s mostly forgivable.

Let·s
all take some time to respond more calmly now. Mr. Lyons was
doing his job, and does it well. Calling for his job and making
threats against him are actions that are unwarranted. What
might be more appropriate to ask is why isn·t anyone
going after the bar that served Kenny far too much alcohol?
They had a legal obligation to cut him off!

Wanda
Lubinski

Albany

Look Here,
Too

To the
Editor:

Reliable,
easy-to-use, full text medical information [·Here·s
to Your E-Health,· Tech Life, May 4] is available online
free from the New York State Library in the Gale Health &
Wellness Resource Center. This resource offers articles from
medical publications and general interest publications on
medical topics, medical pamphlets, a health organization directory,
medical and alternative health encyclopedias, a medical dictionary,
drug and herb information, health assessment tools, and links
to health news and Internet resources.

The Health
& Wellness Resource Center is one of a package of New
York Online Virtual Electronic Reference Library (NOVEL) resources
offering access from library, home, school, or office to thousands
of national and international newspapers and magazines, health
and medical resources, business collections, Spanish language
materials, and age-appropriate materials for youngsters. It·s
available free to anyone with a New York State driver license
or non-driver ID at http: //novelnewyork.org, or through local
libraries all over New York State.

Mary Redmond
Coordinator of Library Operations, New York State Library

Albany

There·s
Room for Everyone

To the
Editor:

Is, as
Chuck Quackenbush recently wrote in this space [·A
Critical View,· Letters, April 13], ·the Albany
region a glorious place to ride with motorists handling themselves
like good compassionate people who treat [cyclists] like me
with respect?·

Is, as Mary Lou Nolan recently wrote in this space [·Ride
On,· Letters, April 20], the Capital Region a place
where cyclists must ·endure· rude and even violent
drivers?

Do cyclists
in the Albany area, in order to be safe, have to ·grab
every one·s attention and say, ·I·m here
and this place on the road is mine·? Not asking nicely
but grabbing it loudly,· as Brian Polhemus wrote [April
20]?

In my
opinion, the answer to all these questions is, ·Yes!·

I would like to add that Albany and the surrounding region
comprises a fairly small geographic area, and riding to any
number of destinations·school, work, shopping, or the
library·is not particularly challenging for many residents.

We have
wide roads with ample room for everyone, beautiful scenery,
few hills and a lovely countryside that can be accessed by
bicycle in a half an hour. Yes, we have problems: Potholes
and inexperienced or rude drivers are just a few of those
problems.

But there
are two problems that are much more serious than rude motorists
or potholes: Global warming and a war that is being fought
for oil. Municipalities need to support cycling as a valid
if not a desperately essential part of the transportation
equation.

So, don·t
complain unless you can offer a possible solution. To that
end, I would like to invite everyone·cyclists, motor­ists
and law enforcement personnel·to join the New York
Bicycling Coalition on Sunday, May 21, for a one-day class
where we can learn the basic techniques required to intelligently
share the road. Please check out nybc.net or call 436-0889
for more information.

Claire
Nolan

Albany

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